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Cranberry Cognac Trifle

This impressive dessert is the sum of many parts that can each be made several days in advance. Assemble the trifle the day before serving to allow the cake to absorb the custard and the flavors to fully develop.

Special equipment: 3 (15- by 10- by 1/2-inch) baking pans and a 3 1/2-quart straight-sided glass trifle or soufflé dish

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Preparation

Make cake layers:

Preheat oven to 350°F and butter pans. Line bottom of each pan with wax or parchment paper and butter paper. Dust pans with flour, knocking out excess.

Whisk together yolks, 1 1/2 cups sugar, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl until combined well, then whisk in flour and salt until smooth. (Batter will be thick.)

Beat whites with an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. With mixer at low speed, gradually beat in remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Increase speed to high and beat until whites hold stiff, glossy peaks.

Fold about one third of whites into batter to lighten, then fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly.

Divide batter among pans and spread evenly. Rap pans against a work surface to release any air bubbles. Bake, 1 pan at a time, in middle of oven until cake is pale golden and beginning to shrink around edges, 10 to 11 minutes per pan. Cool layers completely in pans on racks.

Assemble trifle:

Loosen edges of 1 cake layer with a knife. Place a sheet of wax or parchment paper on top of layer and invert onto a rack. Carefully peel paper from cake. Place a new sheet of wax or parchment paper on inverted cake and reinvert onto work surface, peeling off paper that is now on top. Repeat with remaining 2 layers.

With long side of layers toward you, halve layers vertically with a serrated knife. Spread 1 half of each layer (3 of 6 halves) with cranberry jam, then top with remaining plain halves.

Put each "sandwich" crosswise into 10 (71/2- by 3/4-inch) strips. Arrange 1 strip vertically in trifle dish with a cut side against glass (see photo below), then trim strip flush with top of dish. Using trimmed piece as a guide, cut remaining strips to fit dish, reserving trimmings. Brush strips on all sides with Cognac syrup and fit strips tightly all around edge of dish. (If your dish is slightly smaller on bottom than on top, cut a few strips in half diagonally to fill any gaps.)

Brush trimmings with syrup and arrange one fourth of them in 1 layer in bottom of dish. Pour in 1 cup custard. Repeat layering of trimmings and custard to fill dish, ending with custard. (You may have a small amount of custard left over.) Brush top of strips around edge with syrup. Cover trifle with plastic wrap and chill at least 8 hours.

Make topping:

Beat heavy cream with confectioners sugar, Cognac, and vanilla with an electric mixer until it holds soft peaks. Remove plastic wrap from trifle and mound cream on top.

Cooks' notes:

• Resist the temptation to bake more than 1 cake layer at a time; layers will bake extremely unevenly. • Cake layers can be baked 2 days ahead of assembling and chilled, wrapped well, or frozen up to 1 month. • Trifle can be assembled (before topping with cream) up to 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.

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Recent Reviews

This trifle was amazing. A huge hit!
I followed the recipe - each one - to the letter - the jam, syrup, custard, cake, and whip cream.
Like other reviewers I found the custard was too runny. I didn't want to waste what I had made since it tasted fantastic so I simply added more cornstarch. It thickened up beautifully. The orange zest added a nice flavour to the custard and the cognac syrup.
The cake was so light and delicious. I baked each cake individually and they were perfect.
The finished product looked and tasted incredible. I found that the cake along the edge of the bowl kept its shape nicely and was still tasty and not soggy when eaten as leftovers 2 days later.
The portions were right one. I had extra jam so I froze it for the next time I make this dessert. There was a small amount of custard and absolutely no cake. Everything fit into the trifle bowl perfectly.
I was worried the cognac would be and overpowering taste but the trifle was not boozy tasting. All the flavours complimented each other perfectly. The end result was well worth the effort.

CaraFig from Ontario, Canada /

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I've made most of the holiday trifle recipes on this site and this was the most disappointing. Although some of the guests did really enjoy it, many people found it too sweet. For the amount of effort it takes to make, I'm not sure its worth it for the mixed reviews it gets. <p>
To reduce the effort, you could substitute lady fingers for the cakes (the cake is essentially a lady finger recipe). You could also use store-bought jam. You might not be able to create the striped sides, but could just layer instead.

A Cook from New York, NY /

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Surprisingly light and delicious considering all the rich ingredients. Be sure to fully bake the cakes to a golden brown, as the more done they are, the better they will stand up to the cognac and custard. We did not put enough cognac on each piece and a stronger taste would have made the end result even better. I wish the cranberry flavor had been more distinct - I think it was somewhat lost in the other flavors. Do not fret the thinness of the custard - it is REALLY thin, but it therefore soaks into the cake much better. I'm on the fence about whether I'd do this again - it does take considerable effort, although the presentation is spectacular.

A Cook from Chicago /

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custard too runny . would use more orange zest the next time .

A Cook /

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Beautiful dessert. The custard was not firm enough...too liquidy....that was my only complaint. Find another recipe for the custard. Served 18 people with this dish!!